Hall of Fame

Simpsons

This doesn't mean you won't see any Springfield regulars on your quest to save Maggie, mind you. Cameo appearances are everywhere. Many characters, like Milhouse, will show up to offer you power-ups. Others, like Otto and Lunch Lady Doris, provide life-replenishing food items. Of course, many of them just stand around: Moe will tend bar, Principal Skinner and Martin will nerd things up, etc. You'll even see a few characters from Groening's Simpsons-preceding In Hell comics on occasion.

Graphically, the game is very detailed, and looks great on a lo-res monitor. Since the television show was never a beacon for amazing visual effects, Konami easily and faithfully reproduced Springfield as it is seen on television. The cinematic intro looks amazingly similar to the real show opening. Each character features an abundance of animations that will have you laughing out loud.

Maggie's oral fixation gets her in trouble again.

The audio is also high in quality. Music is an underrated contributor to the success of The Simpsons, so it's only natural that the video game would emulate this as well. There are numerous sound clips from the show, including catch phrases from the main characters. The music accompanying the intro is the same you hear on the show.

Even today, The Simpsons arcade game stands as the best video game ever with Bart and Homer in it. Vivendi Universal's Simpsons: Hit & Run comes darn close, though, using a semi-free-roaming Grand Theft Auto-style to show off Springfield in all its glory. However, the arcade game was way earlier, and still captures the essence of the show.

Sure, you get immersed in Simpsons culture, but even people who despise the yellow-skinned scars have plenty to enjoy here. This is just a fun brawler, and one of the best examples of the genre that the gaming industry has ever seen. It may not have the gritty edge of Double Dragon, but it features nearly as many moves, and will tickle your funny bone as you're breaking some bad guy's cheek bone.

The Simpsons has gone downhill on television over the past few seasons, so it's nice to look back upon its more innocent era -- one where celebrity guest stars don't dominate every episode and the writing wasn't phoned in. Arcade cabinets were very common in the early to mid 1990s, so you shouldn't have too much trouble track this game down. Get to it.